(a) "Center" means a community dispute center which provides
conciliation, mediation, arbitration or other forms and
techniques of dispute resolution.

(b) "Mediator" means an impartial person who assists in
the resolution of a dispute.

(c) "Grant recipient" means any organization that administers
a community dispute resolution center receiving funds pursuant
to this Part.

(d) "Chief Administrator" means the Chief Administrator
of the Courts or his designee.

Historical Note
Sec. filed Feb. 2, 1982 eff. Jan. 1, 1982.

Section
116.2 Application

(a) The provisions of this Part
shall apply to the funding of community centers organized
to expeditiously resolve minor disputes, especially those
matters that would otherwise be handled by the criminal justice
system.

(b) Funds available for disbursement pursuant to this Part
shall include those funds appropriated by the State Legislature
for said purposes, and shall also include funds received by
the State from any public or private agency or person, including
the Federal government, to be used for the purposes of this
Part.

Historical Note
Sec. filed Feb. 2, 1982 eff. Jan. 1, 1982.

Section 116.3 Eligibility

To be eligible for funding pursuant to this Part, a center
must meet the following conditions:

(a) It must be administered by a nonprofit organization
organized for the resolution of disputes or for religious,
charitable or educational purposes.

(b) It must provide neutral mediators who have received
at least 25 hours of training in conflict resolution techniques.

(c) It must provide dispute resolution services without
cost to indigents and at nominal or no cost to other participants.

(d) It shall, whenever reasonably possible, make use of
public facilities at free or nominal cost.

(e) It must provide, during or at the conclusion of the
dispute resolution process, a written agreement or decision,
subscribed to by the parties, setting forth the settlement
of the issues and future responsibilities of each party, and
must make such agreement or decision available to a court
which has adjourned a pending action pursuant to section 170.55
of the Criminal Procedure Law.

(f) It may not make monetary awards except upon consent
of the parties, and such awards may not exceed $1,500, except
that where an action has been adjourned in contemplation of
dismissal pursuant to section 215.10 of the Criminal Procedure
Law, a monetary award not in excess of $5,000 may be made.

(g) It may not accept for dispute resolution any defendant
who is named in a filed felony complaint, superior court information,
or indictment, charging:

(1) a class A felony; or

(2) a violent felony offense as defined in section 70.02
of the Penal Law; or

(3) any drug offense as defined in article 220 of the Penal
Law; or

(4) a felony upon the conviction of which defendant must
be sentenced as a second felony offender, a second violent
felony offender, or a persistent violent felony offender pursuant
to sections 70.06, 70.04 and 70.08 of the Penal Law, or a
felony upon the conviction of which defendant may be sentenced
as a persistent felony offender pursuant to section 70.10
of the Penal Law.

(h) It must provide to parties, in advance of the dispute
resolution process, a written statement relating:

(1) their rights and obligations;

(2) the nature of the dispute;

(3) their right to call and examine witnesses;

(4) that a written settlement or a written decision with
the reasons therefor will be rendered; and

(5) that the dispute resolution process will be final and
binding upon the parties.

(i) It must permit all parties to appear with representatives,
including counsel, and to present all relevant evidence relating
to the dispute, including calling and examining witnesses.

(j) It must keep confidential all memoranda, work products
or case files of a mediator, and must not disclose any communications
relating to the subject matter of the resolution made during
the resolution process by any participant, mediator or any
person present at the dispute resolution.

Applications for funding
pursuant to this Part shall be submitted to the Chief Administrator,
and shall include the following information:

(a) a description of the organization administering the
center, including a description of any sponsoring organizations;

(b) an itemized description of the annual cost of operating
the proposed center, including the compensation of employess;

(c) a description of the geographic area of service, the
service population and the number of participants capable
of being served on an annual basis;

(d) a description of the facilities available in which the
proposed center is to be operated;

(e) a detailed description of the proposed program for dispute
resolution, including the types of disputes to be handled
and the cost, if any, to the participants;

(f) a statement of the present availability of resources
to fund the center;

(g) a description of the applicant's administrative capacity
to operate the center, including the educational, training
and employment background of every member of the staff of
the center;

(h) a list of civic groups, social services agencies and
criminal justice agencies available to accept and make referrals,
written statements from these groups and agencies indicating
an intent to accept and make referrals, and a description
of how the program will be publicized to make potential referring
agencies, the courts and the public aware of its availability;

(i) a description of the past history of the operation of
the center, including specific information for the past two
years concerning the program, area of service, staff, source
of funding, expenditures, referring agencies, number and types
of disputes handled, and number and types of disputes resolved;

(j) a list of all other available dispute resolution services
and facilities within the proposed geographical area;

(k) documentation that the center meets the eligibility
requirements set forth in section 116.3 of these rules;
and

(l) such other information as may be required by the Chief
Administrator.

Historical Note
Sec. filed Feb. 2, 1982 eff. Jan. 1, 1982.

Section
116.5 Approval

(a) The Chief Administrator shall
select centers for funding pursuant to this Part and shall
determine the amount of funds to be disbursed for each center
within available appropriations.

(b) No funds provided by the State shall be disbursed for
any center in an amount greater than 50 per centum of the
estimated annual cost of operating the program as determined
by the Chief Administrator.

(c) In determining the centers for which funds may be disbursed,
the Chief Administrator shall consider:

(1) the need for the program in that geographical area;

(2) the structure and scope of the proposed program;

(3) the cost of operation;

(4) the availability of sources of funding;

(5) the adequacy and cost of facilities;

(6) the ability of the applicant to administer the program;

(7) the qualifications of the personnel staffing the center;

(8) the effectiveness of the program; and

(9) any other consideration which may affect the provision
of dispute resolution services pursuant to this Part.

(d) A center may be rejected if the Chief Administrator
determines that it will be unable to comply with any of the
conditions set forth in section 116.3 of these rules.

Payment of funds pursuant to this Part shall be made pursuant
to contract entered into between the Unified Court System
and the grant recipient.

Historical Note
Sec. filed Feb. 2, 1982 eff. Jan. 1, 1982.

Section
116.7 Program evaluation

(a) The Chief Administrator shall monitor and evaluate each
program receiving funds pursuant to this Part.

(b) Each grant recipient shall provide to the Chief Administrator
on a periodic basis as determined by the Chief Administrator
the following information concerning its program:

(1) amount of, and purpose for which, all monies were expended;

(2) number of referrals received by category of cases and
the source of each referral;

(3) number of parties serviced;

(4) number of disputes resolved;

(5) nature of the resolution of each dispute, including
the type of award and amount of money awarded, if any;

(6) number of cases in which the parties complied with the
award, including the nature of the dispute and award in each
such case;

(7) number of returnees to the resolution process, including
the nature of the dispute and award in each such case;

(8) duration of each hearing;

(9) estimated cost of each hearing; and

(10) any other information as required by the Chief Administrator.

(c) The Chief Administrator shall have the power to inspect
at any time the operation of any center receiving funds pursuant
to this Part to determine whether the center is complying
with the provisions of this Part and the terms of its contract,
including the examination and auditing of the fiscal affairs
of the program.

(d) The Chief Administrator may halt the disbursement of
funds pursuant to this Part at any time he determines that
the program is not adequately providing services pursuant
to this Part or that any of the provisions of this Part are
being violated.

Historical Note
Sec. filed Feb. 2, 1982 eff. Jan. 1, 1982.

Section
116.8 Records retention

(a) All financial records of the grant recipient and center
pertaining to funding received pursuant to this Part, shall
be retained for a minimum of four years after the expiration
of the contract entered into with the Unified Court System
pursuant to this Part.

(b) A copy of the written agreement or decision subscribed
to by the parties, setting forth the settlement of the issues
and future responsibilities of each party, referred to in
section 116.3(e) of this Part, shall be retained for a period
of six years after execution.

(c) A fact sheet or summary of each case from which the
center may compile the information required for program evaluation
pursuant to section 116.7 of this Part, shall be retained
for a period of six years after termination of the case.

(d) No other time requirements for records retention shall
apply unless otherwise contracted by the parties.